Village seeks to document extent of damage to apply for FEMA relief

Once last week's torrential rainfall finally stopped, overwhelmed residents and suburban officials worked to get things back to normal.

Downers Grove officials implemented special garbage pickup for the week, specifically to help residents get rid of debris and damaged items resulting from the storm. By Tuesday, all roads in town had been reopened, though officials said that standing water could remain in areas for some time. Officials continued to clear debris in the creeks that flow into the East Branch of the DuPage River and to monitor water levels.

Officials asked that residents, even those who had already reported flooding, complete an online survey to help determine whether the county would be eligible for funding through the Federal Emergency Management Agency.

All told, more than 1,000 residential and commercial buildings flooded, about 850 customers lost power, residents saw water coming up through toilets and sump-pump drains, and the police and fire departments rescued dozens of stranded motorists and residents trapped in their flooded homes, according to a report from Village Manager David Fieldman.

The flooding was the worst many Downers Grove officials had ever seen, according to Assistant Public Works Director Stan Balicki.

"We've had events where we've had more rainfall than we had (Thursday)," Balicki said. "But the ground was very saturated. The ground had little ability to absorb the rainfall. It was almost as though every surface in the village was asphalt."

Balicki said the village dodged the severity of problems seen in neighboring Lisle. But several areas had moderate to severe flooding, and DuPage County officials declared Downers Grove a disaster area after Thursday's storm. Fieldman said that the village's storm water system began overflowing at 4 a.m. Thursday.

Balicki added that while public works crews ran 24/7 operations for several days, it was still tough to keep up with the demand for services.

"We had areas throughout the community that had flooding, all the way on the north side to Butterfield Road, all the way down to 75th (Street)," Balicki said. "We've got a lot of low-lying pockets, roadways, areas in yards that hold water."

Fieldman also stated in his report that a portion of the basement surgical unit at Advocate Good Samaritan Hospital flooded, started a fire and knocked out power.

Officials did not know what caused the spectacular flooding that filled the $60 million Belmont Road underpass with several feet of water and forced the road's closure for several hours. Balicki said village officials have made inquiries to DuPage County.

One area hit hard was near 60th Street and Fairview Avenue. Front lawns and backyards at that corner were almost completely submerged, and a large puddle of water pooled in the middle of 60th, rendering it nearly impassable.

One resident who felt the impact of that damage was Rezzy Azzam, whose family moved to the area two years ago. Her front and backyards remained underwater, even after the water receded, and 12 feet of dirty water sat in her recently finished basement. Her sump pumps, water heater and one of the furnaces all failed.

"We were like an island," Azzam said Friday, wearing black galoshes to survey the scene. " We didn't know what to do."

The situation was even more dire in neighboring Westmont. Police Chief Tom Mulhearn estimated that about half of the village's homes and buildings sustained water damage. Additionally, some 40 percent of the roadways were impassable during peak travel times for residents.

Downers Grove village spokesman Doug Kozlowski said it could have been worse.

Officials began examining and upgrading the storm water infrastructure after heavy rains in 2006 caused widespread flooding. In 2007, the village created the Watershed Infrastructure Improvement Plan to pinpoint areas in the system needing repairs. The village established a capital fund the following year devoted to those improvements and borrowed $25 million to finance high-priority projects.

Kozlowski pointed to such improvements, including detention facilities, as helping to stymie the flow of storm water into the rising creeks.

"Those went a long way in minimizing and reducing the lasting impact of the flood waters here," Kozlowski said. "We did have issues where a lot less rain used to cause a lot more problems in our community."

Mary Nevrly felt emotional as she talked about the clean-up efforts at her home on Gilbert Avenue.

Nevrly said the stream right next to her home simply couldn't absorb all the extra water and poured about two feet of water into their basement. It is the second time in the ten years her family has lived there that they've experienced any flooding.

"It's dirty," she said. "It took us about two hours to get the water out."

Like many on her street, dirt had washed up to the reaches of her front door and settled on her lawn, driveway and sidewalk. Plastic tubs filled with toys and other belongings were stacked in her garage. A large metal trash bin sat in her driveway.

Nevrly was removing some drywall and the baseboards, hoping they would be salvageable. While she didn't lose anything irreplaceable, Nevrly said it was still a difficult process.

"It's just stuff," she said, holding back tears.

Azzam, meanwhile, could do little but look around in disbelief as pumps and tubes snaked out of her home attempting to clear the enormous amount of water climbing up the stairs in her basement.

"It's just the feeling of being helpless," she said. "I don't know where to turn to. I don't know where to begin, where to ask for help. You cannot do anything."